wrestlepediafandomcom-20200214-history
Mantaur
Mike Halac (born May 14, 1968) is an American professional wrestler. He is best known for his appearances with the World Wrestling Federation in the mid-1990s under the ring names Mantaur and Tank. Catch Wrestling Association (1991–1994) In 1991, under the ring name Bruiser Mastino, Halac traveled to Germany to work for the Catch Wrestling Association. He debuted on November 11, in a losing effort against Rambo for the World Heavyweight Championship. He remained with the promotion until late 1994, when he returned to the United States to perform for the World Wrestling Federation. World Wrestling Federation (1995) On the January 7, 1995 episode of WWF Superstars of Wrestling, Halac debuted in the World Wrestling Federation as Mantaur, defeating Walter Slow. The Mantaur character was that of a Minotaur-like character, and Halac would perform antics such as charging, trampling, mauling, and mooing at opponents. Soon after debuting, he acquired Jim Cornette as his manager. Mantaur then began a small winning streak, defeating a series of jobbers. He came close to defeating then-Intercontinental Champion Razor Ramon, but lost the match by disqualification due to interference by Jeff Jarrett, who was involved in a feud with Ramon at that time. Mantaur made his first and only pay-per-view appearance at WWE Royal Rumble 1995, where he competed in the Royal Rumble match and lasted almost 10 minutes before being eliminated by Lex Luger. Mantaur entered the 1995 King of the Ring tournament but was pinned by Bob Holly in a qualifying match. In his final televised WWF match, he lost to Bam Bam Bigelow as part of a push to enhance the popularity of Bigelow as a babyface. Halac made his last WWF appearance as a lumberjack in a lumberjack match between Sycho Sid and Diesel at WWF In Your House 2. Extreme Championship Wrestling and return to CWA (1995–1996) After leaving the WWF, Halac returned to his Bruiser Mastino ring name and joined Extreme Championship Wrestling. He debuted there on December 1, 1995 with a victory over The Dark Ninja. Eight days later, he lost to Hack Meyers at ECW December to Dismember 1995. A few weeks after that, he lost to 911. At ECW Holiday Hell 1995, Mastino defeated El Puerto Ricano in his final match for the promotion, in which he was jeered with "Mantaur" chants from the always-vocal ECW audience. Halac then briefly returned to the Catch Wrestling Association as Terminator Mastino. Return to WWF (1996) In April 1996, Halac returned to the WWF playing the role of Goldust's unnamed bodyguard. He appeared with Goldust at WWF In Your House 7 in his corner for his match against the Ultimate Warrior. After Goldust lost, the bodyguard attacked Warrior but was overpowered and body slammed. United States Wrestling Association and third return to WWF (1997) Halac then worked in the United States Wrestling Association as Tank, a member of The Truth Commission where he wore a mask. He won the Unified World Heavyweight Championship, his first and only wrestling title, on March 15, 1997 after defeating then-champion Jerry Lawler. He lost the belt back to Lawler in a rematch seven days later. Later that spring, Tank was involved in a controversy surrounding the World Tag Team Championship. While The Interrogator and Recon (Tank's teammates in The Truth Commission) held the title, Tank substituted for The Interrogator in one match and his team lost the title to Nick Dinsmore and Flash Flanagan. The title change was declared invalid, however, as Tank was not one of the official holders of the World Tag Team Title. He returned to the WWF in June 1997 with the Truth Commission as he fought as Tank. He was on two WWF Shotgun Saturday Night episodes until his release later that summer. Second return to CWA and the independent circuit (1998, 2000–2001) Halac returned to the CWA in September 1998, again as Bruiser Mastino. He wrestled three matches for NWA Germany later that year, winning the first against Franz Schumann on September 22, losing the second to Ulf Herman September 23, and losing the third to Shumann on December 2. He also competed in the European Wrestling Promotion (EWP), defeating Christian Eckstein on November 25. Halac returned to the EWP on May 18, 2001, winning a triple threat match against Eric Schwarz and Martin Nolte. The next day, he defeated Big Tiger Steele. After many many years of being out of wrestling, Halac decided to get back in the ring for one last time . So In May 2015, as "The Turkish Terror" Madd Mustafa, he won the inaugural American Heritage Wrestling Heavyweight Championship in Adel, Iowa. * United States Wrestling Association Unified World Heavyweight Championship * American Heritage Wrestling Heavyweight Championship See Also WWE Alumni, ECW Alumni